


Recovery

by sierraraeck



Series: Aundreya Chambers [25]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Aaron Hotchner - Freeform, Angst, Aundreya Chambers, Behavioral Analysis Unit (Criminal Minds), Criminal Minds Family, David Rossi - Freeform, Derek Morgan - Freeform, Emily Prentiss - Freeform, F/M, FBI, Fluff, Gen, Original Femal Character - Freeform, POV Original Female Character, Penelope Garcia - Freeform, Slow Burn, Spencer Reid - Freeform, Spencer Reid Angst, Spencer Reid Fluff, Tara Lewis - Freeform, The BAU Team as Family (Criminal Minds), bau, jennifer jareau - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:33:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29229285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sierraraeck/pseuds/sierraraeck
Summary: Now that everything has settled down, will Spencer and Aundreya ever get their happy ending? Story twenty-five.
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Original Female Character(s), The BAU Team/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Aundreya Chambers [25]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2130924
Kudos: 1





	Recovery

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t really remember what Rossi’s mansion looks like, so just go with me.

I woke up.

It probably doesn’t seem revolutionary, but that’s all that happened. For once, all I did was wake up. No glass shattering, phone bussing, table crashing, or blood spilling involved. Just slowly opening my eyes, looking around, and checking the time.

_11:27? Holy shit did I take sleeping pills and not remember?_

Rolling out of bed, I padded out of Spencer’s bedroom. “Good morning, sleepy head,” he sang. But that was not Spencer’s voice teasing me. I turned the corner and saw Derek standing in the kitchen with Spencer. I gave him a confused look and he gave me a gigantic grin, “I was supposed to take pretty boy out to lunch today, but it seems his company kept him away.”

My voice sounded raspy, “You could’ve just gone. I would’ve been okay.”

“Yeah, but I think you’ve had enough surprises for forty lifetimes. I figured I didn’t need to add on to that,” Spencer smiled.

“Plus, I didn’t mind coming over,” Derek shrugged, “Nice morning voice by the way.”

I cleared my throat, “Just because I woke up two minutes ago does not mean I can’t still kick your ass.”

“A morning attitude too, huh?” he wiggled his eyebrows at me. “I’ll take my chances.” 

I was still groggy, my body not knowing what to do with this much sleep, and filled up a glass of water. I leaned up against the counter next to Spencer, opposite Derek. “There’s another plate in the microwave if you want it,” Spencer said. I nodded. 

I don’t know why it hit me then, but it was like a wave of knowledge that just slapped me in the face. _There’s a dead fucking body probably rotting in my living room right now._ I paused mid step, then turned to set my water glass back down on the counter, trying not to panic. “Thank you for the offer, but I better get home.”

I started heading toward the door and Derek joked, “Looking like that?”

I spun around to face him, “I said I’d kick your ass.”

He laughed and walked after me, shutting the door the moment I opened it, “We took care of it.”

I furrowed my brows, “What? What do you mean, what are you talking about?”

“Slow down,” he rolled his eyes, “We. Took. _Care of it._ ” When I was still looking at him bewildered, he motioned for me to return to the kitchen, “Eat your breakfast.”

“I-I don’t understand,” I shook my head.

“Emily and I went to check out your place after you made that little comment to us. We saw that it could use a little _cleaning up_ , let’s say. So we called some of your friends, Deen and the big guys, and the five of us picked some things up,” he explained so casually, as if we weren’t talking about two federal agents working with my criminal friends to get rid of a dead man.

I felt weird but there was nothing I could do about it. Not like I _would’ve_ done anything about it. I was honestly relieved that they cleaned up for me because I really didn’t want to have to deal with another problem. “Thank you. I really appreciate that.”

Derek shrugged, “No problem.”

I offered a small laugh at that, and Spencer looked between the two of us absolutely confused. It was kind of adorable. “What are you talking about?”

I was about to answer when Derek stepped in, “You know how her apartment looked after all of those break ins. Now that we’re assuming those won’t happen anymore, we decided to clean it up for her.”

I gave Derek a look as if to say ‘You’re not going to tell him? _’ Why would he lie for me?_ Derek ignored my gaze. 

“Oh, that’s nice,” Spencer said, shyly smiling.

“Yes it was,” I agreed. I grabbed the plate of bacon, eggs, and toast out of the microwave. It has cooled down a little, closer to room temperature, but it was better than most other breakfasts I’d had. Usually I didn’t have time for food at all. “Derek, these are great.”

Spencer dropped his fork and looked at me offended, “Why did you just assume it was him?”

Derek laughed and I pressed my lips together, trying to hide a smile, “It’s just … You’re a chemistry guy, so baking works for you. Cooking, on the other hand…” I gave him a sarcastic grimace.

“Alright, fine, I get it,” Spencer tried to act annoyed, but I could tell he was having a bit of fun.

“Nothing personal, pretty boy,” Derek said, stabbing another bite of eggs. “I just know my breakfast.”

I bit into the bacon and hummed, “Yeah. Definitely.”

“How are the two of you?” Derek asked after a few seconds had passed.

I held my breath for a moment, thinking he was referencing an _us_ that we hadn’t exactly talked about, but Spencer answered, “Considering everything, not too bad. It’s better knowing that we all made it out safely.”

 _Oh, that’s what we’re talking about._ Derek shifted his gaze to me, “As well as can be expected. I actually got the best night of sleep I can remember. I’ve never gotten over twelve hours of sleep before. I honestly think he gave me a sleeping pill or something,” I said, gesturing to Spencer.

“I can assure you, I did not,” he said.

“That’s good to hear. To add on to the good news, I have a surprise for the both of you,” Derek said. Spencer and I exchanged a look. “We have the next week off.”

“Thank god,” I started to say, before he’d even completely finished. 

“I know,” Derek agreed with my reaction, “After everything that went on, which personally included our team, they thought it would be a good idea for all of us to take some time.”

“That’s fantastic,” I sighed in relief. 

“ _After_ paperwork tomorrow,” Derek finished. I groaned.

My shoulders sagged and Spencer exclaimed, “Are you serious?”

“Unfortunately,” Derek frowned, “But it’ll be over before you know it.”

* * *

I walked into the office the next day, on time, might I add, but everyone else was already there getting a jump start on their work. _I guess I missed the memo._

“How’d you sleep, Sleeping Beauty?” Derek teased as I passed his desk.

“I slept well,” I replied.

Emily, who was standing right next to him, jumped at the opportunity, “We can literally see the sleep in your eyes and the dark circles around them.”

I fired back, “Well you asked how I slept… and for the 20 minutes I _did_ sleep, I slept well.” I gave them a mock grin.

“What happened? I thought you were soaking up the Zs,” Derek playfully asked.

“Payback I guess for getting more than I’m used to,” I shrugged as I finally sat down at my desk.

The day was decidedly not over before I knew it. It was excruciatingly slow, and everything was boring. Well, everything except Spencer.

He and I made frequent coffee runs and would always stop to talk while we were over there. I would look over at him when I was bored or couldn’t focus, and sometimes we’d make eye contact and he’d offer a small smile. It was nice to have someone who could understand how hard it was to focus. 

I started getting really jumpy, bouncing my leg as irritation set in. I decided I couldn’t sit in that damn chair looking at those damn files for a moment longer, suddenly pushing out from my desk, maybe a little too forcefully, and making my way to the bathroom. I walked over to the sinks and rested my hands on the counter, staring into the mirror. I splashed some water over my face, then wiped it away with the sleeve of my shirt. There was a knock at the door and I yelled, “Occupied!”

“Aundreya, it’s Spencer,” he voice rang through the door. 

“Oh, sorry Spencer,” I said, opening the door. 

“What’s going on?” he asked, slightly peering behind me.

“I’m fine. I’ll be out in a minute,” I assured, about to shut the door on him.

He put his foot in the way and stared through me with those sparkling eyes. “Don’t hide. Not from me.”

I knew he wasn’t going to give up, so I did. “I’m just… distracted. It’s hard to focus and I feel like I have a lot I still need to get done,” I confessed.

“Doing the write up of what happened in the past 48 hours isn’t easy,” he acknowledged. He looked around nervously, and I realized that we were having this conversation half in and half out of the bathroom, so I grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him in, locking the door behind us.

“Yeah, especially since I haven’t even gotten there yet.” He gave me a look that invited me to continue, so I added, “I’ve been dreading it. I’ve already been replaying and replaying what happened, and by now I can’t tell the difference between my nightmares, hallucinations, and reality.”

“You just need a break,” he said, “That’s understandable. Take your time, and if it makes you feel less stressed, we can go through the report together. I have one that I have to fill out, too. We can see if we can convince the rest of them to take some of our other files.”

I gave him a slight smile at the offer, then asked, “You have to fill one out, too?”

“We all have to, actually,” he informed me, “The rest have to describe what they saw and heard, Hotch has to explain his decision, and we have to report everything that went on in that room.”

“Wow, I guess we’re all having a shitty day,” I pointed out.

“So do you want to do them together?” he offered again, “It might help us fact check each other.”

“Sure. I’ll grab my file and meet you in the round table room,” I suggested.

“Aundreya…” he trailed off. I gave him a confused look. He sighed, “I’m not going to leave you here.”

Then I understood the other reason he was there. _He thinks I’m getting addicted, like what happened to him._ It explained all the shifty looking around and examining me. “I’m not doing that. I promise,” I assured.

“Just,” he broke eye contact with me, “Just come with me. Now?”

I relented, “Okay.”

I followed him out of the bathroom, grabbed my file, and met him in the round table room.

* * *

“This was the _longest_ day,” Derek complained, shaking his head.

“It’ll be over before you know it,” I mocked in my best Derek Morgan impression.

“Very funny Sleeping Beauty,” he stuck his tongue out at me.

“Dinner at my place?” Rossi offered.

“In an hour?” Emily asked. I checked the time. It was almost five. I could wait until six to eat.

“Give me another half hour and you’ll be eating the best lasagna of your life,” Rossi smirked.

Emily cocked her head to the side, “Alright. I can wait.”

“Can Will and the boys come?” JJ asked.

“Of course,” Rossi answered, as if it was an absurd question, “Actually, you should all bring someone.”

Emily laughed, “How about Sergio?”

“Not sure if he’d like lasagna,” Rossi raised an eyebrow.

“We’ll see Savannah, right?” JJ asked Derek.

“Yes ma’am, as long as she isn’t paged,” Derek smiled.

“Savannah?” I questioned.

“Oh, just some hot nurse Derek has managed to pick up,” Emily teased.

“Hey,” Derek called, “I’ll have you know that she is the smartest, kindest, and most beautiful person I know.”

“More than me?” Penelope pouted as she entered the bullpen.

“Don’t be silly baby girl,” Derek assured, “You’re geniuses in different ways.”

This made Penelope smile like a schoolgirl. I’d always loved their outrageous banter. 

“Speaking of geniuses,” JJ segued, “What about you Spence?”

For the first time in this conversation, Spencer looked up. We all knew he hadn’t been listening, “What about me?”

“Are we going to be seeing Maeve tonight?” JJ asked.

Spencer’s mouth hung open, struggling for words when Derek saved him, “No pressure, kid. We just haven’t seen her in awhile, so invite her if you want.”

“Y-yeah, uh, yeah,” Spencer said, finally sounding more confident in his answer. 

“Cool,” JJ said, standing up from her seat on Emily’s desk, a smile plastered to her face. I didn’t think anything of it until she looked at me, her smile becoming just slightly wider. She’d never really liked me, not really. Whenever I got too close, she’d try to convince me to stay away, or challenge my intention and how much I cared about him, or try to push Spencer in a different direction. She was protective of him, but for reasons I no longer understood. If she felt something for him, she needed to back off because she was married, and if she cared about his feelings, she needed to let him make his own decisions about what he wanted. She clearly had no faith in him to make the right decision for himself.

But I had to have more trust in him than she did. I wasn’t about me over Maeve. It was about Spencer. I had to believe he’d do what was best for him whether that included me or not.

* * *

_This was a bad idea._

There was no way I was going to be able to sit through the entire dinner watching Spencer and Maeve and everyone else chat it up with them. 

_This was a very bad idea. I need a drink._

Rossi was not kidding when he said he lived in a mansion. The place was enormous. There were elaborate marble stairs that led up to the dark wood double doors with windows that looked as intricate as stained-glass. Behind those doors were about three different versions of living rooms: there were couches and a tv to left with a bar on the right, down the hall to the right was another set of loveseats and chairs with a grand piano, and there was a massive dining room table across from the kitchen. The kitchen. Don’t get me started on that man’s kitchen. I wouldn’t even know how to use over half of the things in there.

Everyone was standing by his bar-slash-counter thing, and my aim was to get _away_ from everyone, so I figured I’d head to said kitchen. Rossi was on the opposite side of the island, searing some vegetables in a sauté pan. 

“How’s it going in here?” I asked, hopping up to sit on the island.

“My expensive whiskey is in that cabinet over there,” he pointed to one on his right, not even glancing up at me.

I chuckled, reaching down to grab it before looking for two glasses to pour it into. Rossi did not help me out on that one, enjoying the show of me opening every single cabinet until I found some that I decided would suffice. I poured some into each glass, pushing one across the granite countertop. Rossi clinked our glasses together, then took a swig.

“I’d offer to help, but I have no idea what a kitchen is,” I commented.

He laughed, “That’s good, because I wouldn’t let you. I’m a control freak when it comes to my food.”

“Me too,” I smiled, “But not nearly in the same way.”

“I’d go for possessive,” he nodded. I shrugged in agreement. “What’s the problem?”

“No problem,” I said, taking another sip.

“People don’t just come in here looking for my expensive stuff without a problem,” he pointed out. 

I just looked at him. “You know why I’m here, otherwise you wouldn’t have known what I was after when I first walked in.”

“Touché,” he admitted, “But you’re distracting me from my cooking. I will not serve these people burnt food, so you should go back out there.”

“Bullshit,” I countered, “You could cook with your eyes shut and hands tied behind your back.”

He dodged my question and encouraged, “Go back out there and be social.” 

“I am being social. I’m talking to you,” I pointed out.

“I’m not the most social guy, either. I’m by myself in a kitchen, usually how I like it, but we have company over, so I think we should interact with them.”

“ _We_ have company over?” I asked smugly.

“You did live here on and off for a while,” he acknowledged.

“You’re never gonna let that go, are you?”

“No,” he glanced over at me, smirking, “Now go back out there.”

I crossed my arm and pretended to pout like a child, “I don’t wanna.”

“Just go, talk to a few people,” he gave me a pointed look, “Talk to him.”

“ _Them_ ,” I corrected.

“Exactly, the more the merrier.”

I groaned, downing the rest of my drink before shuffling back out the kitchen. Before I left, I called, “Come get me if you need anything. Like _anything_. Cleaning, pouring another drink-”

“Get the fuck out of my kitchen.” 

I rolled my eyes and loudly whispered, “ _Anything_.”

I heard him mumble, “Dramatic.”

“Heard that!” When I got back out to the first living room, I looked around for someone to talk to. There were a lot of groups, it would’ve been so easy just to pick one and walk up to them, but I really didn’t feel like talking to people, especially the non-team members. I was about to pull myself together and introduce myself to Savannah when Emily saved me.

“Being single is boring,” she huffed.

“Being in a relationship is hard,” I replied. We were both leaning up against the farthest wall from the rest of the people, opposite the entry way. 

“True. Why do you think I limit my relationships to cats?” she pointed out.

I gave a single laugh, “Why do you think I limit my relationships to burglars?”

“Wait, I thought you had a thing with that Mateo guy?” she asked, looking over at me.

“I did, well, I do, but,” I struggled, “I don’t know. He’s a great guy it’s just-”

“Not the person you want?” she finished.

“I guess you could say that,” I agreed. “Plus, I didn’t really think this would be his scene.”

“I would have never guessed,” she joked, “But isn’t he the face of business for you or something?”

“How’d you figure that out?”

“Have you seen his face?”

“I’ve seen more than his face,” I smirked.

That elicited a laugh, “I’m sure.”

“I know people think I’m crazy-”

“Probably because you are,” Emily cut in.

I gave her a mischievous smile and continued as if she hadn’t spoken, “But not crazy enough to bring a ring member to a federal agent get-together. Even though he is good at schmoozing, I just figured it wouldn’t feel right. I mean, I didn’t know how you’d all react to me bringing him and vice versa.”

“You weren’t worried about _all_ of us though.” _God I hate profilers._

“I just didn’t think it would be a good idea, that’s all,” I defended.

“Apparently Penelope did,” Emily mused, nodding her head toward the door. Stepping in was Penelope in a very lavish pink and yellow dress with Deen at her arm.

“Oh my god,” I said, shaking my head as the two of them approached us. “Deen, you’re here. I can’t believe you let her drag you to this.”

“She could drag me anywhere,” he smiled, and the three of us laughed.

“I know. So clearly no heart attacks yet,” I teased.

“What?” Penelope intervened.

“Aundreya, for real?” Deen’s shoulders tensed a little.

I gave him a cheeky smile and wiggled my eyebrows, turning to Penelope, “Back when we were at the hospital, you and I, Deen and I talked about him asking you on a date. He told me that he nearly choked when he saw you in work attire and he’d probably have a heart attack and die if you ever dressed up for a date.”

“Oh no, that definitely happened the first time,” Penelope confirmed, nodding her head enthusiastically.

“I’m my defense … look at her,” Deen said. 

“Oh I know,” Penelope said as Deen kissed her on the cheek. I could tell they were getting caught up in their own world, and felt like I was intruding somehow.

“Well I am going to leave the two of you to it,” I started moving away as Penelope giggled. 

I didn’t know where I was going, but I found myself walking toward the bar again when Derek caught me. “Aundreya, I want you to meet Savannah.”

I was going to shake her hand, but she went in for a hug instead. I obliged, trying not to seem awkward about it. I asked about her job and she told me all about how much she loved helping people and how amazing her coworkers were, and the whole time Derek was just giving her the biggest heart eyes I’d ever seen. I was going to call him out on it, but Savannah was a smart woman, I’m sure she saw that for herself. Plus, when I was contemplating embarrassing Derek, Spencer and Maeve mosied on over.

I tried, I really did, but I’m terrible at composing my more bitter emotions.

“Hey guys,” Derek sang, “It’s great to see you, Maeve.” They hugged and he introduced her to Savannah and then the eyes were on me. 

“Hey, Maeve,” I cautiously greeted, “It’s been a while.”

“Yes it has, and I’m so happy to see that you’re doing well,” she said, scanning me. I still had a lot of injuries, but I opted to wear something that would cover all of me except my face, which I used a heavy load of makeup on. I’m sure the ladies could tell that I was trying to cover something up, but it was better than them seeing the actual bruises and cuts. 

“Thanks and same to you,” I gestured toward her with my hand.

“So, Maeve, tell me what you do,” Savannah prompted.

“Oh, well I’m a geneticist. I’ve recently been working on a new project in the lab that’s been eating up most of my time. Luckily, Spencer’s been able to help when he has the time,” Maeve smiled, patting Spencer on the chest. 

“That’s cool that the two of you can work on something together,” Savannah said.

“Yeah it has been really nice. We’re able to bounce ideas off of each other, and it’s refreshing that we both understand the time commitment of the other’s job, including late nights and being away for a while. I’m sure you and Derek get it, you’re a nurse, right?” Maeve asked.

I started zoning out, thinking about what Spencer had told me about the two of them. Maeve seemed as happy as ever, and didn’t act like they were having any sort of problems at all. The way Spencer made it sound, it was a mostly mutual decision to take a step back from each other with Maeve not staying over as much. However, based off of what I’d just heard from her, she was just staying late or overnight at work. Two very different narratives.

_Is Maeve covering up their issues with work? Was Spencer telling me the whole truth? If things were going good and they were happy together, why was he acting sad when he told me that they weren’t spending as much time together? What is going on?_

I was confused and not invested in the conversation at all, which didn’t go unnoticed. Spencer side-eyed me, but I slunk away before things could get weirder. 

I had just grabbed another drink when Spencer approached me. “I can tell you’re upset-”

“I’m not,” I nonchalantly interjected, “Just confused.”

“The reason I didn’t-”

“Dinner is served!” Rossi announced, and everyone started filing into the dining room. 

I saw Maeve giving Spencer doe eyes from across the room as Derek and Savannah moved toward their seats.

“No need, your very happy and invested girlfriend is waiting for you,” I rushed, before sliding past him toward the dining room. I took a seat between Emily and Tara (it was the single ladies section of the table apparently), and lucky for me, I was across from Spencer and Maeve. _Typical._

“I’d like to make a toast,” Rossi announced, clinking his glass. We all fell silent, “I was just joking earlier that usually, I like cooking in my kitchen by myself. And while that still reigns true, especially because I’m not sure how many of you have ever seen a kitchen before,” that gained some laughter and he winked at me, “I realized that gatherings like these are very special. Having everyone here in the same room with their loved ones is something taken too often for granted. Here’s to family.”

A chorus of ‘to family’ and ‘cheers’ rang throughout the room. Dishes started being passed around as everyone scooped out their portion, casual conversation breaking out. 

After a few minutes of that, it was Derek who was clinking his glass. “We have an announcement to make, if that’s alright with you.”

We waited expectantly as him and Savannah smiled at each other. Savannah held us in suspense for another moment before saying, “We’re pregnant!”

As people, including myself, started cheering and giving our congratulations, Derek spoke over us, “And I’ve just completed renovation on my eighth property, which is where we will be moving into.”

“Wow guys, that’s amazing,” JJ said, taking Savannah’s hand from across the table.

“I’m really happy for you,” Tara said, “Have you thought of any names?”

“For the house?” Derek joked, “I was thinking Ted, or Bill, or maybe-”

“No, we haven’t,” Savannah nudged Derek, causing him to laugh.

“Well, while we’re sharing big news,” Maeve drew our attention to her and Spencer, “We’ve found a little house to move into as well.”

_Just when I started enjoying this meal._

“That’s so cool, where is it?” Emily asked her. I wasn’t paying attention to her answer though. I was just staring at Spencer, who was trying to act calm, but I could see the discomfort behind his eyes.

My attention wasn’t drawn back to the conversation until Maeve said, “And Aundreya, I just wanted to thank you again, because-”

“ _Don’t_ thank me.” _I am really fucking terrible at keeping it together._ My voice was too harsh. I tried to save myself by adding, “I was just doing my job,” but I couldn’t resist the line that followed, “I’m only now realizing how much that has cost me.”

No one said a word, the once bubbly mood of the group being ground under the sole of my shoe in seconds. But it actually wasn’t me who got things moving again. It was Spencer. He stood up, dropping his napkin on the table, “I can’t do this.”

He stormed out of the dining room, Maeve on his heels in seconds calling ‘baby’ after him. I don’t know why I stood up, but the moment I did, I sat back down.

“Nuh uh,” Emily said, yanking me to my feet again, “Get up, bitch.”

“What the hell?”

“I told you to just tell him how you really felt!” Emily exclaimed.

“I told you to stop running,” Aaron added.

“I told you to stop torturing yourself,” Rossi added onto the list.

“I basically asked you if you loved him, and you didn’t say no,” Penelope grinned.

“And _I_ told you that you meant everything to him,” Derek shrugged, leaning back in his chair, “But I also said you were just stubborn, blind, and stupid.”

“Derek!” Savannah whacked him.

“What?” he put his hands up, “I came home and told you all this. You agreed with me at the time!”

“Damn, I get it,” I said, ending the list of cues I’d missed or deliberately ignored.

“Not like anybody listened to me,” JJ interjected, “But I said this was a bad idea.”

“Not now, JJ,” Rossi said. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms.

Emily put both hands on my shoulders, “I swear to god, Aundreya, if you don’t go out there right now and fix this _by telling him the truth_ , you will have a whole new thing coming for you.”

I looked at her, and then at the rest of the on-edge, dare I say excited, faces of everyone sitting at the table (minus JJ), and relented, “If I didn’t fucking love you all so goddamned much, I’d hit every single one of you.”

“That’s the spirit,” Derek cheered. Savannah gave him another look, but then smiled to herself, shaking her head.

I took a deep breath, straightened my shoulders, then marched outside. I looked around trying to find them for a moment before seeing them halfway up the street. I started a slight jog toward them and caught the end of Spencer’s sentence, “-but I do.”

His eyes flicked to mine and Maeve turned so she could look at us both. “Don’t you see. The way you’re looking at her right now is not the same way you look at me.” Spencer was about to argue, but she held her hand up. “Spencer, I’m not mad. I’m hurt because I’ve always had this feeling that you loved her more than me, I’m just sad it took you this long to realize it, too.”

“I never wanted to hurt you, Maeve,” Spencer regretfully whispered, looking down at his hands.

“I know,” she melodically responded, “But I want you to be happy. You two should be together after everything you’ve been though. I know that the majority of the time you were spending with me, you were thinking about her, if not about where she was and how you could find and save her, then just about being with her. _I_ would be hurting _you_ if I got in the way of that.”

“Maeve, I-”

“I know,” she cut him off again, “But this time, to her.” Both of them looked at me expectantly. Spencer’s eyes flickered between Maeve and myself, clearly uncertain what to do. “Go ahead, it’s not going to hurt me anymore.”

“Aundreya,” he said. He hesitated a moment longer, giving regretful eyes to Maeve before turning his attention back to me. “I love you.”

My heart hammered and I couldn’t believe what my ears were hearing. “And you?” Maeve prompted.

And then it all came tumbling out, “First, Maeve, I wanted to apologize. You’re an exceptional woman and I’ve been nothing but bitter towards you. You didn’t deserve that because you always handled everything with such grace and I can’t imagine how it must’ve felt to get shamed by me for being with him and how it must feel right now-”

“Thank you,” she stopped me. “I just want Spencer to be happy, and if that’s with you, then that’s what should happen. I just need to know that you’ll take care of him.”

“Absolutely,” I assured her.

“Good,” she smiled sadly. She started walking away but paused for just a second when she was right next to me. “I believe it’s your turn.”

I turned my gaze back to Spencer, who looked broken and hopeful all at the same time. God I was going to pass out. “Spencer, I should have told you this a long time ago, but I was too scared. You had Maeve and I thought that I wasn’t good for you.”

“You are good for me,” he said, taking my hands. “Please, just say it.”

“I love you, Spencer Reid,” I confessed, and before I could even release a sigh of relief, my breath was taken away. His lips were on mine before I could blink, like every cell in his body was waiting for this moment. It was one of those time-stopping kisses that made me feel like the only other person in existence. His hands were cupping my face and mine were around his neck, moving to his hair. His tongue slid into my mouth as I sighed into him. I felt warm and light, but I couldn’t tell if it was the feeling or the lack of oxygen to my brain. Not like it mattered to me. When we pulled away, there was some hooting and hollering coming from the general direction of Rossi’s house. I should’ve known better when they encouraged me to go out there. I went back in for another kiss, moving one of my hands away from Spencer’s curls for a few seconds in order to flip the rest of them off. I heard some laughing, so I knew they’d seen it. 

“I waited way too to do that,” I mumbled against his lips, trying to contain the grin that turned my lips. 

“Me too,” Spencer said, slightly breathless.

As we walked back toward the house, arms around each other, Derek was giving us a slow clap, “Well if it isn’t pretty boy and gang girl.”

“I said kick your ass, Morgan, and I am more than awake now,” I reminded him.

“I’d say it’s about damn time,” Rossi’s voice cut in, sounding annoyed, but the smirk on his face was all I needed to know.

“That’s for sure,” Emily playfully agreed, smiling brightly, “But they’re good together.”

“Bullshit,” Derek corrected, “They’re _great_.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this series and thank you so much for taking this crazy ride with Aundreya! I had a ton of fun writing it and I hope you had just as much reading it. For those of you interested, I still have an epilogue planned full of ideas that floated into my head about how their life would be after they finally got together, and what happens with some of the rest of the characters, along with what I hope to be a very steamy bonus chapter! Otherwise, this was the end for these two stubborn, trouble-bound lovebirds. Please share your thoughts on the ending or anything that happened during their story! Much love!


End file.
